What Is a Compulsory Strike-Off? A Complete Guide

A compulsory strike off is the process by which Companies House removes a company from the register without the directors asking for it. If you are asking what is a compulsory strike off, it is the process by which Companies House - not the company's directors - removes a company from the register. Initiated unilaterally by the registrar under sections 1000 to 1002 of the Companies Act 2006, it differs from voluntary dissolution - where directors themselves apply to close the company. Once struck off, the company ceases to exist as a legal entity. Understanding what triggers this process, how to stop it, and how to reverse it is essential for any director, creditor, or third party with an interest in the company.

Compulsory vs Voluntary Strike-Off

The two routes to strike-off are often confused. The table below shows the key differences:

Factor	Voluntary strike-off	Compulsory strike-off
Who initiates it	The directors (or majority of directors)	The registrar at Companies House
Trigger or reason	Directors decide the company is no longer needed and apply to dissolve it voluntarily	Failure to file required documents, no valid registered office, or reasonable cause to believe the company is not trading
Form involved	Form DS01 (application to strike off), submitted by the directors	No form - the registrar acts on its own authority; notice is published in The Gazette

In short: voluntary strike-off is a planned, director-led closure. Compulsory strike-off is an enforcement action by the registrar, usually because the company has stopped engaging with its filing obligations.

Why Companies House Initiates a Compulsory Strike-Off

The registrar can act whenever there is reasonable cause to believe a company is no longer in operation. In most cases this means an overdue confirmation statement or overdue annual accounts - persistent non-filing signals the company may have stopped trading. Other common causes include statutory mail being returned undelivered because the registered office address is no longer valid, or a combination of failures that together give the registrar reasonable cause to believe the company has been abandoned. For the full breakdown of triggers and what happens after the registrar decides to act, see our detailed guide to the first gazette notice for compulsory strike-off.

The Process and Timeline

Companies House must follow a defined procedure before striking off a company. It begins with warning letters, followed by a first gazette notice for compulsory strike-off published in The Gazette. The registrar must then wait at least two months before issuing a second (final) notice. If no valid objection is received, the company is dissolved. Many directors are unaware the process has started because warning letters go to an outdated address - by the time the gazette notice appears, the clock is already running.

For the full step-by-step timeline, see our guide to gazette notices and the compulsory strike-off process. You can also read our article on what a gazette notice is for background.

Consequences of a Compulsory Strike-Off

The consequences of dissolution are significant and often underestimated:

• The company ceases to exist. At the moment of dissolution it can no longer enter contracts, own property, bring or defend legal claims, or employ staff.
• Assets pass to the Crown as bona vacantia. Any assets held at dissolution - bank balances, property, intellectual property, receivables - vest automatically in the Crown under the doctrine of bona vacantia ("ownerless goods"). Bank accounts are frozen at the same time. Recovering assets requires applying to the relevant Crown body for a discretionary waiver. See our guide on what happens when a company is dissolved for more detail.
• Potential personal exposure for directors. Allowing a company with outstanding debts to be dissolved without properly winding it up can attract scrutiny. In serious cases, directors may face disqualification proceedings or, where wrongful trading or fraud is involved, personal liability.

How to Stop a Compulsory Strike-Off

There are several routes to stopping the process, depending on where in the timeline you become aware of it:

• File the overdue documents. If the trigger was a missed confirmation statement or overdue accounts, filing them promptly is usually enough to cause Companies House to suspend the strike-off. This is the quickest fix in most cases.
• Object in writing to the registrar. Any person with a legitimate interest - a creditor, shareholder, employee, or counterparty to an ongoing contract - can write to Companies House with evidence of why the company should not be dissolved. The objection must be made before dissolution takes effect.
• Apply to court in urgent cases. Where dissolution would cause immediate and serious harm - for example, destroying an ongoing contract or extinguishing a creditor's claim - it may be necessary to seek an injunction or court order suspending the strike-off.

Once a valid objection is accepted, Companies House will publish a further Gazette notice confirming the suspension. The underlying issues must still be resolved to prevent the process from restarting.

How to Restore a Company After Compulsory Strike-Off

If the company has already been dissolved, it is not necessarily permanent. There are two routes to restoration under the Companies Act 2006:

Administrative restoration

Under sections 1024 to 1028, a former director or member can apply directly to Companies House - without going to court. This route is generally available for up to six years from dissolution, but only where the company was struck off compulsorily and was carrying on business at the time. All outstanding filings must be brought up to date and penalties paid. It is the faster and cheaper option when it applies.

Restoration by court order

Section 1029 covers broader circumstances - including cases where administrative restoration is not available, where a third party such as a creditor is applying, or where the company was struck off voluntarily. Unlike administrative restoration, restoration by court order has no fixed statutory six-year cap. The court applies its discretion, and applications made long after dissolution are possible, though the further from dissolution the application is made, the harder it becomes to satisfy the court. One notable example is personal-injury claims: a court may allow a restoration application to pursue such a claim even where the usual administrative timeframe has long passed. Court restoration is more involved than the administrative route and almost always requires professional legal advice.

Once restored, the company is treated as though it had never been struck off. Assets that passed to the Crown as bona vacantia may be recoverable, but this is a separate process and is not automatic.

Check a Company's Status Now

You can use our free company search tool to check a company's current Companies House status and filing history in seconds. You can also monitor a company's status and filing changes over time, so you are alerted the moment something new appears on the register.